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“By leveraging 21st century technologies, the U.S. can improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and speed of the Federal environmental review and permitting process — and remove the layers of bureaucracy that are stopping growth while improving the quality of the review process,” said the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
The order gives the Council 45 days to deliver a Permitting Technology Action Plan—a fast-track blueprint that will rip apart the paper-based approval system and replace it with cutting-edge tech solutions.
And this isn’t just talk. The directive immediately sets up a Permitting Innovation Center—within 15 days—to begin building and testing digital tools that can dramatically shorten review times and cut costs.
Cabinet officials are hailing this as a massive win for American energy, agriculture, and industry.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum was clear about the mission ahead.
“We need to drill more, map more, mine more, and build more — all while innovating faster than our global competitors,” Burgum said. “The Permitting Technology Action Plan will channel our greatest asset, American innovation and technology, to overhaul our current permitting process.”
Energy Secretary Chris Wright torched the old system, pointing to the toll it’s taken on American families and national security.
“Outdated permitting systems are creating costly delays at the exact moment we need to be expanding capacity, strengthening our energy security, and building the infrastructure that powers American industry and lowers costs for families,” he said.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy didn’t sugarcoat it.
“It takes too long to build in America,” Duffy said. “Ridiculous red tape and outdated regulations add cost and delays to projects. It has to stop.”
The new action plan won’t just speed things up—it’ll force accountability. Here’s what Trump’s plan demands from federal agencies:
- Ditch the paperwork and switch to fully digital applications
- Use automation to streamline minor project reviews
- Share data between agencies to eliminate repeated analysis
- Coordinate clearly between federal, state, and tribal partners
- Make project timelines transparent and predictable
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins emphasized that this is a game-changer for American producers who’ve been buried in bureaucracy.
Just Released: Trump White House Collector’s Bobblehead!
“For too long, our producers have experienced delays and uncertainty as they navigate a complex permitting process that gets in the way of American innovation and stifles energy and timber production,” Rollins said.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin made it clear that protecting the environment and unleashing American productivity are not mutually exclusive.
“No longer will applicants face years-long, uncertain, and costly permitting processes. Instead, we will safeguard our environment and incentivize investment into our economy creating American jobs,” Zeldin promised.
President Trump’s memo laid it all out: the days of government incompetence and inertia are over.
“The Government does not properly leverage technology to effectively and efficiently evaluate environmental permits, causing significant delay to important infrastructure projects that impact our economic well-being. This will now change,” he wrote.
Agencies now have a tight 90-day deadline to begin implementing the new high-tech standards.
This move stands in sharp contrast to the Biden administration’s years of paralysis, where vital energy and infrastructure projects died a slow death in regulatory limbo. Trump’s bold order is the clearest sign yet that he’s ready to rebuild America—faster, stronger, and smarter.
With Washington’s red tape slashed and American ingenuity unleashed, one thing is certain: America will build again—and Trump is leading the charge.
